Whisper
by Guardian795
Summary: The story behind Fatal Frame, retold in a different view. This story will go back and forth between Kirie and the present, and all shall be told. Prequel to HAUNTED.
1. The Assignment

**Whisper**

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By Guardian795

**Note: I do not own Fatal Frame 1 or any of its characters. Any name that you do not recognize, however, belongs to ME. This is my rendition on the game that sparked all of the many fans here. This is the original horror story that brought about the Fatal Frame Series.**

**WARNING: Rated PG-13, but is really rated MATURE for Yuri, language, violence, and disturbing themes, just like my first story "Haunted". Once you get to the second installment of Fatal Frame, feel free to read that story too.**

§§§

**Chapter 1: The Assignment**

"Mr. Takamine…are you sure that this is a good idea?" The old man turned around to come face-to-face with his student, Mafuyu Hinasaki. A young man of 21, Mafuyu was strong willed and gentle. His short, jet black hair stuck out a bit, and his neck held a black band. His dark eyes gazed at his mentor with both concern and admiration. After all, Mafuyu was aspiring to be a novelist just like Junsei Takamine. The old man of 42 shook his head.

"My young man, I am quite sure that this is a splendid idea. You know that I've had writer's block for the longest time, and this mansion sounds like a wonderful place to spark a really good story," Takamine said to him. Mafuyu, ever the caring man, still looked worried.

"But…Mr. Takamine…"

"No buts, my friend. If you are concerned about my safety, I'll have you know that we are taking a cab to the mansion. Koji Ogata and Ms. Tomoe Hirasaki will also be accompanying me," the older man said, trying to soothe his student's worry. The young man frowned lightly at hearing the names of Takamine's escorts. "Koji is going to use some of the material we find in a horror magazine he is writing. And Tomoe…well, she is my assistant. She's skeptical of any of us going, but she's coming anyway. Just goes to show you how loyal and helpful she is. I'll have to pay her double in her next paycheck," he joked, winking at Mafuyu, who smiled.

"Now, be off with you. I need to pack for the trip. Come see me later, in my office. I'll tell you what the mansion is about." Mafuyu bowed respectfully as Takamine turned around and walked for his study. As Mafuyu went to leave, he heard his mentor's voice call out, "Oh, and bring your sister too!"

§§§

There was a small gathering of friends that afternoon to say goodbye to the team of researchers. Takamine wanted to go by 10:00 am the next day, so the team and Mafuyu had to be up early. Koji Ogata invited his sister and brother-in-law, Tomoe invited her roommate and two other friends, and Mafuyu brought his younger sister, Miku. Takamine watched his young charge and his sister from across the room. The family resemblance was easily seen. Miku and Mafuyu both had slim bodies, Miku looking much more fragile and delicate than her brother. Their eyes were the same color, as was their skin. They looked almost like twins, but Mafuyu was about 4 years older than his sister.

Young Miku was another story. Mafuyu was a bit more outgoing than she was; he worked with his mentor, Tomoe and Koji very easily and happily, chatting away with them and adding in his part. Miku, so far as Takamine could tell, was so much quieter. She would nod politely to people as they said "Hello", then she would scurry away to be useful instead of reply to a conversation, and she usually stuck close the Mafuyu.

But as Takamine continued to watch the young girl, he saw the deep fire within in her. She was always willing to take on a new challenge, and knew no boundaries for her love for her brother. The two both wore a black band around their necks, identical. It seemed childish, but an effective way to show their bond and care for each other. Takamine went to the pair and approached them. "I see you brought the young Miss Hinasaki with you, Mafuyu," he said, smiling. Miku looked up at him and smiled.

"Hello, Mr. Takamine. It has been a long time since I saw you last," she said in a cheery voice. So close to her, he could see that she didn't look so young. She held an innocence to her, that was true, but she also had a sad look in her eyes, as though she knew too much. "Mafuyu has told me so much about you. You are truly a dedicated man, Mr. Takamine," she said kindly. "Not many writers go through the tedious care that you do to make their story the best."

"What makes you say that, Miss Hinasaki?" he asked her.

"Please, call me Miku, Mr. Takamine. You are going to the mansion your story about, am I correct?"

"Yes," Takamine replied.

"And, as far as I know, you plan to spend all of your time there until you're ready to write."

"Yes."

"To me, that is very careful and planned exertions for just a novel, Mr. Takamine. You certainly love your work," Miku said.

"I love my work very much, Miku. I want your brother to join me after a few days at the mansion," he told her. At this, Miku paled. Mafuyu looked at her, his eyes searching for answers, but she only shook her head.

"I'm sorry…would you excuse me?" she asked. Mafuyu nodded before Takamine could say anything, and she hurried out of the room.

"Did I say something wrong, Mafuyu?" Takamine asked.

"No…but, Miku is sensitive to the thought of me leaving to join you, that's all. She…she doesn't think this is a good idea either, Mr. Takamine," Mafuyu said, reluctantly. Takamine stared at his young charge in a bit more confusion.

"Why? Little Miku hardly knows us…"

"Sir…do not misjudge her. Please, she is only concerned. I am all she has, and she loves me as much as I love my job. She is only looking out for me and my boss, you," Mafuyu said, a little pale. Takamine wasn't entirely sure what was going on with his student, for he had been acting strange like this for many weeks. In fact…he'd been acting like this ever since he told Mafuyu about the trip.

Takamine pondered this a moment. Tomoe, his assistant had been acting the exact same way too…Could there be a connection? He glanced over at Tomoe Hirasaka, who was reading a book. For a while, she had refused to go on the trip. She said it was dangerous, too little information about the area, lack of structure along the mountain paths, etc. She would make up any excuse to see that she didn't have to go. Takamine shook his head. His assistant was so loyal to him that she had finally decided to come. She would not let him go alone…but she was still very nervous about it.

Mafuyu looked at Tomoe as well, his eyes reading the poor woman's face. "Mr. Takamine…I wish you wouldn't go," he told his mentor again.

Takamine only put a hand on his young charge's shoulder. "Don't worry, Mafuyu. We'll be back before you know it."

§§§

Mafuyu tossed and turned in his bed, sweat streaming from his forehead as he clutched the sheet on his bed. "No…stop…" he moaned, struggling with his own dream. "Mr. Takamine!" he cried, his dreams overtaking him into a world of shadows.

_Takamine__, Tomoe, and Koji were walking down a strange hall, filled with ropes hanging down, tied to beams above their heads. _

**What a strange place…**

** We shouldn't be here…**

** _I hope this mansion has good stuff for my magazine…_**

**ROPES**

_TAKAMINE!_

_The ropes…there are more ropes…I can't find the others…_

**MIRROR**

_Tomoe, what's going on! What's happened to you?_

**_KiRIe_******

**FEEL MY PAIN**

_ThE__ RopEs aRe TiGHTeniNg_

"NO!" Mafuyu cried, swiftly sitting up in bed. Sweat dripped down his face, and he gasped for breath. He put a hand to his bare chest, and realized that he had been dreaming for quite a while – his sweat had dripped onto his chest. He looked at the clock, which read 3:49.

"Mafuyu…" a soft voice said. He looked up and over to his doorway, where his sister stood. She looked out of breath, small tears in her eyes. Her sweatpants and tank top fit her body loosely, and her hair hung below her shoulders. "Mafuyu…the research team…" she whispered.

"You saw it too, Miku?" he asked. He got up out of bed and went over to his sister. He put his arms around her gently. "What all did you see?"

Miku's eyes overflowed with tears. "Mafuyu…they're dead…" she said quietly.

"What…!" he cried.

"I saw them…reflections of them in a mirror…and then the mirror shattered and was covered with ropes – ropes covered in blood!" Mafuyu only stared in horror at his sister. He had not seen their deaths being foretold, but she had.

_She must be so torn up inside about what she saw…_ he thought.

"Miku…I'm going to go to the mansion and find them," Mafuyu said.

"What? No! Mafuyu, please, don't go!" she cried, grabbing hold of him.

"Listen to me. I have to find them. Even with this vision, it's been two weeks since they went. They have not contacted, not asked for me to come, not given any feedback. Even if our visions are wrong, something has happened to them. I have to go and help them, Miku," he told her firmly. Her grip loosened.

"Please…come back soon…" she said quietly. He nodded as he went to his dresser and began to take out clothes that he would need. When he turned back around, she was behind him, holding a camera in her hand. "Mother's camera? But, why?" he asked.

"It will help you, Mafuyu. Mr. Takamine took your other camera. If you take pictures and send them to us, maybe we can help you here." Mafuyu smiled. Miku was thinking on her feet.

"Thanks, sis." She smiled at him, but he could see the hurt and pain in her eyes. She would never forget what had happened to their mother. Neither would he…

_ "Mommy?" little Miku called. "Mommy, where are you?" She came over to the door leading to the garden out in back. Sliding open the door, her ears heard the sounds of creaking, and her eyes spotted the limp, hanging form of her mother, her neck in a noose._

_ "MOMMY!" she screamed. She fell onto her knees, her eyes staring at this horrific scene. _

_ "Miku!" Mafuyu cried, grabbing her by the shoulders and turning her around. He pushed her head into his chest and he looked up at his mother. His poor sister…the first to find her. What could he do?_

_ "Mommy…" she sobbed into his chest. He sighed. His eyes spotted their mother's camera, lying on its side under her body. "Is this what drove her to suicide…?" he asked himself._

Mafuyu took the camera from her. "Go to bed, Miku. I'll be here when you wake up."

She nodded and left. Miku went back into her bedroom and sat down. She looked over at her large mirror in the corner. There was something she did not tell her brother about her vision, and she never would.

**In the mirror, Mafuyu stood with ropes around his wrists, neck and ankles. A woman stood behind him, her face over his shoulder.**

**_FEEL MY PAIN_**


	2. Mafuyu

**Whisper**

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By Guardian795

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fatal Frame or any of its characters. I do, however, own anything unfamiliar to the story, and names not in the game.**

** How was the first chapter? Pretty good, or bad? I really want to take a different approach, and because Fatal Frame 3 is coming out, I was hoping to get in touch with our infamous yuurei again. After all….Miku will be returning to Himuro in her darkest nightmares, and she will be waiting for our young heroine. **

** Well, in our first chapter, Takamine and his crew went to Himuro Mansion to research material for a book…and disappear. Mafuyu says that he is going to go, and Miku fears for his safety…So what will happen to our bishi? Read on, for this is Mafuyu's chapter.**

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**Chapter 2: Mafuyu**

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Mafuyu Hinasaki, 21, sat in his car, sighing sadly. He had driven everywhere around town…but no one would tell him exactly where the path to Himuro was. Many people said that they didn't know, but it was obvious that they did. Others told him that he shouldn't be asking such questions. He pushed his hair back with his hand. _Is Himuro's story truly this frightening? No wonder Mr. Takamine wanted the story for his book…_

But that still didn't explain how his mentor had gone missing in the few weeks that he was in the Himuro Mansion. Mafuyu looked down at his map and looked through it. He started up his engine again and tried a different route on the other side of the hill.

Thirty minutes later, he did find a path, oddly enough, with a lot of undergrowth in front of it. He had passed it twice before finally seeing that it was there. He drove his car through the undergrowth up down the path, finally coming to a stop when he saw another set of tire tracks that stopped. "Mr. Takamine's cab must have dropped him off here…" he muttered. He continued on the path until it stopped just near a broken bridge. Mafuyu got out of the car. "Damn…" he muttered. "Guess I gotta go on foot." He went back into his car and grabbed his camera and a small bag, slinging it onto his shoulder. He looked around for his mentor's footprints. Once finding them, he went after them quickly, hoping to find the mansion before it became darker. The moon was already up.

By the time that the moon was in the sky, Mafuyu had found a break in the woods, and finally, a bridge. He came to its edge and put his hand on it. The wood was old, rough, hard. He looked up, and his eyes widened as they fell upon a large, ancient Japanese mansion. "So this is Himuro Mansion…" he whispered. His sixth sense immediately began going off, and he put a hand to his head. _What's this? Something in the air…Is this what Miku was so frightened about?_

Mafuyu shook his head as he walked onto the bridge. He looked around at the mansion's scene as he made his way up the long stairs. _It's only an old mansion. Why would Miku be so upset about it? _Mafuyu continued to walk, as his mind wandered to his sister's worry. She was so frightened about him going to this place…but why? _Did she see something that I did not? _He froze. _Did she see Mr. Takamine dead!_ His pace quickened, and he ran up the last flight of stairs to the door. He opened up the door quickly and looks inside. The room was trashed – a portion of the upper floor had caved in into the room and debris lay about. Two huge lattices with cross beams were on either side of the room beside him, and a few steps led into a higher portion of room in the back. Mafuyu stepped into the mansion, taking out his flashlight and flicking it on.

"I have to find them. Who knows what could have happened…" Mafuyu stepped towards the mess in the room and heard the door shut loudly behind him. He whipped around. "Must've been the wind…" he muttered to himself, walking towards the upper part of the room.

_Behind him, her hand on the lock, was a young woman in a white kimono, her head down. Slowly, she lifted her head and looked at the man in front of her. She smirked._

Mafuyu looked around the room curiously, searching it for any signs of his boss or co-workers. Only finding a lit candle, two holes in the floor, a mask on the wall, and a door, he sighed. "Mr. Takamine…where are you?" he asked aloud. Going to the door, he opened it and stepped out into the hallway. He froze in awe and wonder. Long ropes attached to beams hung above his head. Mafuyu walked into the hallway, looking around a bit more. The entire hallway was ripped along the walls, and there was blood on the floor.

"Looks like a wild animal ran through here," Mafuyu commented. He continued on into the hallway until both the camera at his side and his sixth sense began reacting wildly. He brought up the camera as he looked forward. What looked like Takamine walked through the hallway ahead of him.

"Mr. Takamine!" Mafuyu yelled. Takamine didn't respond to him, just kept walking. Mafuyu hurried after him, brushing aside some of the ropes in his way. He came to the end of the hallway, met with his own reflection in a huge mirror. A loud sound caused him to turn to his right, where a door closed. "Mr. Takamine?" he called, opening the door. He walked into the next room.

The entire room was filled with oddities and assortments of antiques. An old samurai uniform was nearby, and a sword lay on an antique dresser. An old fireplace was in the center of the room, which Mafuyu inspected. The dust had been moved recently. "They were here recently," Mafuyu whispered. A loud creaking sound came from above him, and he looked up. Takamine was looking down at him. "Mr. Takamine!" he called. The writer suddenly vanished. Mafuyu ran over to the other side of the room and up the steps that were there. "Mr. Takamine!" he yelled, looking around. The writer was nowhere in sight.

"What…what was that…?" he asked quietly. "A ghost?"

_Down below, by the fireplace, the young woman in the white kimono watched him. "Is it you?" she whispered._

Mafuyu walked forward, then turned around, thinking he heard something. He tripped, falling onto his back. He looked down and saw the thing he tripped on – a notebook. "A notebook? It's…it's Mr. Takamine's…" he breathed. Suddenly, he grabbed his head as a vision took hold of him…

_ Takamine, Koji Ogata, and Tomoe Hirasaka walked down the main hall of the Himuro mansion. "_

_ "This'll be great for my magazine…" Koji said, smiling._

_ "What great architecture," Takamine commented._

_ "This place…so strange…" Tomoe breathed. The trio walked towards the mirror, when behind them, several hands shot out at them. Tomoe jumped and whipped around. Takamine turned to her. "Tomoe? What's wrong?" he asked. She looked at him._

_ "Oh…it's…it's nothing, Mr. Takamine, sir," she lied. They both followed Koji into the next room. The woman in the white kimono appeared behind them, around the hands, smirking._

Mafuyu came back to reality. "If that was Mr. Takamine…then he was here…! But…where is he now?"

Suddenly, a ghost grabbed Mafuyu from behind. He yelled, both in surprise and fear, and whipped around, knocking himself away from the spirit. The spirit was of a bald man, his arms tied to his sides. He groaned in pain.

Mafuyu raised his hand with the camera to take a picture. The spirit ran its hand out towards him, and the flash went off. The spirit gasped and staggered backwards. Mafuyu looked at the camera. "It hurts him?" He stood, holding the camera tightly. He held his ground, keeping the viewfinder on the ghost. He shot several more pictures, until the ghost screamed and disappeared.

"I…I captured a ghost…with this camera…" Mafuyu stammered, his legs shaking. "But…how…?"

The door where he came into the room suddenly creaked open. Mafuyu went to the railing of the steps and looked down. A shadow, female, was leaving the room. Mafuyu hurried down the stairs and went over to the door, which stayed open even after the shadow left. Mafuyu left the room, coming back to the main hallway.

"Hello? Is someone here?" he called. No answer came. He walked further into the hallway, the door slamming shut behind him. He walked into the hallway, a rope brushing his head. As he looked around the hallway, he heard…no, felt…something behind him. He slowly turned around, a hand on the camera.

_You're mine_

_A/N: READ AND REVIEW! Also, read _**HAUNTED** _and _**NIGHTMARE**, _my new Fatal Frame fan fiction about FF3._


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